JChron Posted July 2 Report Posted July 2 Hello.... I inherited a Japanese sword from my grandfather who was a ranked naval officer. Family stories say this sword was won in a poker game at the end of WW2. Can anyone provide info from the pictures? I have more pictures in my profile....Thanks! Quote
SteveM Posted July 2 Report Posted July 2 Normally we would need to see the sword itself, and not just the inscription. The reason is because the name written on the sword is usually secondary to the condition of the sword. In this case, your sword is inscribed with 行宗 (Yukimune), which is the name of the swordsmith. 2 Quote
Conway Posted July 2 Report Posted July 2 Hello Richard, You posted your pictures in the “About Me” tab in your portfolio. The sword your grandfather brought home is an Army Type 98 Officer’s sword. It’s dated Showa 17 or 1942. Full length pictures of both sides of the tang (nakago) may help for a better assessment. It looks like your pictures cut off some characters. 1 Quote
JChron Posted July 3 Author Report Posted July 3 Thanks so much for the info so far.... here is probably the best pic I can get of the tang. I hope this helps. Due to the aging it was a bit difficult to get a good quality picture... Due to the size of some of the pictures I uploaded them to my "About Me" Tab. Thanks for any and all help! Quote
JChron Posted July 3 Author Report Posted July 3 21 hours ago, Conway said: Hello Richard, You posted your pictures in the “About Me” tab in your portfolio. The sword your grandfather brought home is an Army Type 98 Officer’s sword. It’s dated Showa 17 or 1942. Full length pictures of both sides of the tang (nakago) may help for a better assessment. It looks like your pictures cut off some characters. Thanks for adding pictures to this thread! Quote
Conway Posted July 3 Report Posted July 3 So the whole date is: a day in August 1942. It looks like your sword also has a family mon on the end cap of the handle. Does it have a little silver disc there? 1 Quote
Bruce Pennington Posted July 3 Report Posted July 3 Richard, Welcome! You can read about these on Ohmura's site: WWII Japanese Officer Shingunto - Type 98 Care and cleaning: Japanese sword Care There are two Yukimune in Markus Sesko's swordsmith list: "YUKIMUNE (行宗), Shōwa (昭和, 1926-1989), Fukuoka – “Moritsugu Yukimune” (守次行宗), real name Moritsugu Tsunesaburō (守次恒三郎, his first name can also read Kōzaburō), born August 11th 1910, he studied under Sakurai Masatsugu (桜井正次), Masayuki (正幸) and Takahashi Sadatsugu (高橋貞次), during World War II he worked as rikugun-jumei-tōshō, he came from the lineage of Moritsugu Koretoshi (守次是利), kihin no retsu (Akihide), Second Seat at the 6th Shinsaku Nihontō Denrankai (新作日本刀展覧会, 1941) (see picture right) YUKIMUNE (行宗), Shōwa (昭和, 1926-1989), Gifu – “Yukimune” (行宗), real name Nakane Yohei (中根与平)" With your two-character mei, yours could be the second one. I'd check higher above the smith's name for any stamps, possibly a star stamp. 1 Quote
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